SPRINGFIELD –As Sarah A. Concannon commuted from her home in the Sixteen Acres section of Springfield, through other neighborhoods to her job as an inventory control analyst at Baystate Health, she often saw a subject she wanted to paint.

“It seemed like these opportunities were always passing me by, because what was I going to do? Jump out of my car and ask a total stranger if I could take their picture, so that I could paint them?” the 31-year-old artist said.

Well, yes, in that the idea has indeed been translated onto canvas in an ongoing project she hopes will bring Springfield's geographical communities together.

“The People in Your Neighborhood” is her developing art exhibit in which she is painting a portrait of a resident from each of the city's 17 neighborhoods.

“Altogether, the paintings will form a sort of portrait of the city itself,” Concannon said.

Concannon photographs her subjects, and asks them about their neighborhood and how they got there.

“Not only do I want people, who view this series, to see what I've been able to capture visibly in the painting, but also to have a name and a perspective to go with it,” said Concannon of the personal information she includes with each portrait.

“I believe in art as a catalyst for rebirth, and I see individuals and organizations here fighting to find footholds and help revitalize Springfield. To really be a force for positive change, it's important that people see art as being both accessible and relatable. What better way than to make them and their neighborhoods part of the art itself?”

Seventeen paintings is a “solid show” that could be hung somewhere in the city, where the people involved could see the end result and interact with one another, Concannon said of her vision.

She hopes to be able to exhibit her work, and to invite her subjects and their families to an opening celebration. Once any showings have concluded, the artist would like to donate the series to the city.

As portraits, the painting will be focused on the individuals.

“The background will be the environment that they happened to be in at the time (she took the photo), which is to say incidental,” Concannon said.

A graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, with a bachelor of fine art degree, with a concentration in painting, Concannon—a Plymouth native—has lived in Springfield for six years. She has done a number of commissioned works, and the newest cover of Canson's Mixed Media wire-bound pads will feature her work. She is currently helping friends create a brand identity for their micro-brewery.

Concannon feels the 'City of Homes' “has a lot to offer and it's a far more diverse place than anywhere else that I've lived.” She happened upon the Puerto Rican Parade in the Memorial Square area of the city, while searching for a resident to paint, and there she found a feeling of cultural unity and celebration.

“It was great,” she said.

“We've taken some hits recently, like the tornado, but as tragic as that was for the area, the community response was awe inspiring. People here are proud and tenacious, and I admire those qualities. Hopefully that will shine through in my paintings.”

So far for her “The People in Your Neighborhood” project she has subjects for Memorial Square, McKnight, Six Corners, Forest Park, East Forest Park, Sixteen Acres, Metro Center and Indian Orchard.

If anyone from Brightwood, Liberty Heights, East Springfield, Bay, Old Hill, Upper Hill, Pine Point, the South End or Boston Road is interested in being involved, email her at Springfield.art.project@gmail.com.